Biotech company to call Melbourne home

A US biotech company designing “drugs of the future” will set up its Asia-Pacific headquarters in Parkville, led by the cream of Victoria’s scientists and doctors, and focus on treatments for brain diseases.

Praxis Precision Medicines will focus on treatments for brain diseases at its Melbourne headquarters. Generic picture: iStock

A US biotech company designing “drugs of the future” will set up its Asia-Pacific headquarters in Parkville, led by the cream of Victoria’s scientists and doctors.

After two years of talks with the state government, Praxis Precision Medicines will today announce the siting of its research and development centre in Melbourne.

It will focus on treatments for brain diseases.

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More than 100 jobs are ­expected to be created from its base at the Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, and four clinical trials of its three new drugs are ­already under way in Victorian hospitals.

Praxis founder and neurologist, Dr Kiran Reddy said epilepsy, autism, mental illness and Parkinson’s disease would be the company’s focus, as they develop treatments based on new genetic understanding of neurological disorders.

“We take our inspiration from what we’ve seen in the cancer area,” he said. “Only now are brain disorders catching up, and we’re now recognising that many of these disorder come down to an imbalance in the brain networks.”

Dr Reddy said he contacted Florey director Professor Steven Petrou three years ago after reading about exciting research coming from the institute and had raised $55 million to establish a Melbourne base.